AMERICAS
Deutsche Telekom has called a leadership meeting on Wednesday in expectation of US regulatory approval of the proposed merger of T-Mobile and Sprint, Reuters reported. The US Department of Justice was expected to give the nod to the $26bn deal after months of negotiations to address antitrust concerns arising from the deal.
The merger would reduce the number of market players from four to three, which critics say would leave consumers facing less choice and higher prices.
Dish, a television provider, has made a deal with T-Mobile and Sprint to pay $5bn for their wireless assets, Bloomberg reported. It can set the stage for the Justice Department to agree on T-Mobile's $26.5bn merger with Sprint.
Morrison & Foerster is advising Softbank. Richards Layton and Finger, Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz, Latham & Watkins, Hogan Lovells, DLA Piper, Allen & Overy, PJT Partners, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, Evercore, Deutsche Bank are advising Deutsche Telekom. Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom, Simpson Thatcher & Bartlett, Potter Anderson & Corroon, Morrison & Foerster, Goodwin Procter, The Raine Group, SMBC Nikko, Mizuho Securities, JP Morgan, Centerview Partners are advising Sprint Corp.
Sonic Financial Corporation, a financial services provider, agreed to acquire remaining shares in Speedway Motorsports, a motorsport company, for $234m. Under the terms of the merger agreement, Sonic Financial’s subsidiary will promptly commence a tender offer to acquire all of the outstanding shares of the company’s common stock at a price of $19.75 per share in cash.
The closing of the tender offer will be subject to several conditions, including the tender by more than 50% of the outstanding shares of common stock of the Company not held by the Smith Group and certain other related parties and other customary conditions. The per share price represents a premium of approximately 42% to the closing price of the company’s common stock on April 23, 2019.
Morgan Stanley, McGuireWoods, Simpson Thatcher & Bartlett are advising Speedway Motorsports. Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein, Kirkland & Ellis, Bank of America Merrill Lynch are advising Sonic Financial Corp. Ropes & Gray is advising Morgan Stanley.
WesBanco Bank announced an agreement and merger plan with Old Line Bancshares a $500m all stock transaction. Under the terms of the agreement, WesBanco will exchange shares of its common stock for all of the outstanding shares of Old Line common stock, in an all-stock transaction. Old Line stockholders will be entitled to receive 0.7844 of a share of WesBanco for each share of Old Line they own upon the time of the merger or $29.22 per share, based on WesBanco's stock price of $37.25.
"During the last three years, we have significantly diversified our institution into new, high-growth markets with great demographics that will now span six states across the Midwest, Mid-South, and, now, the Mid-Atlantic region as a top ten financial institution in the state of Maryland." Todd F. Clossin, President and Chief Executive Officer of WesBanco.
Keefe Bruyette & Woods, Baker Donelson Bearman Caldwell & Berkowitz are advising Old Line Bancshares. D.A. Davidson & Co, K&L Gates, Phillips Gardill Kaiser & Altmeyer are advising Wesbanco.
"This transaction immediately leverages our global supply chain and adds new capabilities, application know-how, and additional customer base to HEXPOL Compounding Americas as well as broadens and strengthens our presence." Tracy Garrison, HEXPOL Compounding Americas President.
Kirkland & Ellis served as legal advisor and William Blair & Company served as financial advisor to Preferred. Benesch, Friedlander, Coplan & Aronoff served as legal advisor to HEXPOL.
CORSAIR, a world leader in high-performance gaming peripherals and enthusiast components, has acquired custom gaming PC leader ORIGIN PC. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"ORIGIN PC will remain a separate brand within CORSAIR and will continue to operate.
With the gaming PC market continuing to expand as an increasing number of players make the jump from console to PC, we wanted to do more to reach customers in North America that prefer to buy, rather than build, their system. With ORIGIN PC’s expertise in personalized custom gaming systems and CORSAIR’s strength in performance PC hardware and the iCUE software ecosystem, we’re excited to combine our efforts to create new world-class gaming experiences for PC gamers.” Andy Paul, Founder, and CEO of CORSAIR.
Wedbush Securities, Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton are advising Origin. Jones Day is advising Corsair.
The acquisition of ROOT adds significant scale to the Compass platform and is highly complementary to Compass's core strategy of serving high-growth hyper-scale and cloud customers with dedicated facilities delivered on expedited timelines. Following the acquisition, Compass has the capacity to expand up to 375MW of IT load across its current campuses.
"We are pleased to announce this acquisition and welcome the ROOT team to Compass. Our team has been impressed with what AJ and his team have built and their strong reputation with customers. We have an exceptional alignment of culture and experienced personnel, emphasizing the use of standardized components and processes to facilitate rapid data center delivery for our customers. At the same time, we are close to completing the first building on our Northern Virginia campus and have begun construction on our Phoenix campus. Overall, we are on track to deliver substantial capacity in some of the fastest-growing hyper-scale markets across the US and Canada." Chris Crosby, Compass Datacenters CEO.
ROOT Data Center was advised by DH Capital and Dentons. Compass Datacenters was advised by McMillan and Wick Phillips.
TerraForm Power, a renewable power provider, agreed to acquire unlevered distributed generation platform from WGSW and WGL Energy Services, AltaGas subsidiaries, for $720m.
"Following the close of this transaction, TerraForm Power is expected to own one of the largest portfolios of distributed generation in the United States. The acquisition will increase TerraForm Power's average contract duration to 14 years and enhance its resource diversity. Furthermore, this demonstrates our strategy of recycling capital from stabilized assets with limited opportunities for further value creation into newly acquired assets that meet our return targets and have the commercial and operational upside that we can extract through our integrated operating platform." John Stinebaugh, TerraForm Power CEO.
The merger will help Hero Digital achieve planned growth in Austin and provide it with additional B2B expertise.
"The firm's clients will gain access to CX consulting, design, engineering, digital marketing, and data services." Randy Watson, Bulldog CEO.
Etsy to acquire Reverb Holdings for $275m.
Etsy, the global marketplace for unique and creative goods, has agreed to acquire Reverb Holdings, a privately held marketplace for new, used and vintage music gear, for $275m.
"Vibrant two-sided marketplaces are lightning in a bottle - there is only a handful of them operating at scale - and Reverb is one. This transaction is a great strategic fit that firmly aligns with our mission of keeping commerce human. Reverb is the "Etsy" of musical instruments, with significant competitive advantages, and we see tremendous value and untapped potential in the business." Josh Silverman, Etsy CEO.
Jollibee Food Corporation to acquire The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf for $350m.
Jollibee Food Corporation, Philippines' largest foodservice network operator, has agreed to acquire The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, a coffee chain, for $350m. Its investment of $100m represents 80% of the equity of the holding company that will acquire 100% of CBTL. The balance of $250m will be made as advances to the new holding company.
The acquisition of The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf brand will mark as Jollibee's largest so far with business presence in 27 countries. Jollibee aims to accelerate the growth of The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf brand, particularly in Asia, by strengthening its brand development, marketing, and franchisee support system.
Moody's, a financial services corporation, has acquired a majority stake in Four Twenty Seven, a leading provider of data, intelligence, and analysis related to physical climate risks. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The acquisition solidifies Moody's commitment to promoting transparent and globally consistent standards for evaluating environmental, social, and governance risks and opportunities. Four Twenty Seven will also strengthen Moody's growing thought leadership and research on incorporating climate risk into economic modeling and credit ratings.
"Moody's global coverage and analytical capabilities, combined with Four Twenty Seven's comprehensive climate risk data and intelligence, provides an ideal path to continue our work helping market participants integrate potential climate impacts into risk management and investment decisions," Emilie Mazzacurati, Founder and CEO of Four Twenty Seven.
AVI-SPL, a portfolio company of HIG Capital, acquires Digital Video Networks, a company specializing in the design, engineering, integration, and servicing of workplace collaboration technology for meetings and collaborative spaces. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The merger strengthens AVI-SPL's service footprint and provides substantial opportunities to offer additional services and global delivery to DVN's customer base.
"With this transaction, we are delivering greater resources to DVN's customers who can now benefit from a global partner while also providing existing AVI-SPL customers with improved execution capabilities in the growing Southwestern markets." Todd Ofenloch, Managing Director at HIG Capital.
Velodyne Lidar, a provider of smart, powerful lidar solutions for autonomy and driver assistance, has acquired mapping and localization software as well as intellectual property assets from Mapper.ai. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Mapper technology will enable Velodyne to accelerate the development of Vella, breakthrough software that establishes its directional view Velarray lidar sensor. The Velarray is the first solid-state Velodyne lidar sensor that is embeddable and fits behind a windshield, as an integral component for superior, more effective advanced driver assistance systems.
“Expanding our team to develop Vella is a giant step towards achieving our goal of mass-producing an ADAS solution that dramatically improves roadway safety. Mapper technology gives us access to some key algorithmic elements and accelerates our development timeline. Together, our sensors and software will allow powerful lidar-based safety solutions to be available on every vehicle.”Anand Gopalan, CTO of Velodyne.
Ligand Pharmaceuticals acquires Ab Initio Biotherapeutics, an antigen-discovery company, for $12m.
Ab Initio brings to Ligand a patented antigen technology that is synergistic with Ligand's therapeutic antibody discovery platform. This new technology will provide Ligand's current and potential new partners enhanced capabilities for the discovery of therapeutic antibodies against difficult-to-access cellular targets.
"The Ab Initio technology is highly complementary to our OmniAb platform. Antigen generation is a required step in the antibody discovery process, and some targets are very complex with the initial work of antigen design and preparation being difficult. By bolting on the proprietary antigen technology, Ligand will be able to more fully meet the needs of our partners," John Higgins, Chief Executive Officer of Ligand.
Starwood and Apollo said to make a bid for $4bn GE air-finance unit. (FS)
Starwood Capital Group and Apollo Global Management, two investment companies, have submitted offers to buy an aircraft-financing business owned by General Electric, which could fetch around $4bn, according to Bloomberg.
GE explores a possible sale of PK AirFinance, a subsidiary of the conglomerate's broader aircraft-leasing business known as GECAS. GE has received interest from potential suitors.
Inverness Graham Investments has raised $415m for Inverness Graham Investments IV. (FS)
Inverness Graham Investments, a lower middle-market private investment firm, has raised $415m for Inverness Graham Investments IV, overreaching its $300m target.
The fund acquires high growth, technology-enabled businesses with a buy and build approach leveraging the 50-year operating history of the Graham Group. The firm typically invests in companies with enterprise values of less than $100m and EBITDA between $3m and $10m. The firm has completed 57 transactions, including 21 platform companies, since inception.
"We are delighted by the outcome of fundraising for IGI-IV and appreciative of the strong support from both new and existing investors alike. We believe this success is a testament to our experienced team, consistent and strong track record, and differentiated, repeatable model for value creation. We look forward to continuing to partner with great management teams and build businesses of enduring value." Ken Graham, Inverness Graham Senior Managing Principal.
Vale puts up assets for sale.
Vale, for the third time, has put up for sale assets from its manganese operation in Brazil. The company intends to dispose three units, two in Minas Gerais (Barbacena and Ouro Preto) and one in Bahia (Simões Filho), and a captive mine, Morro da Mina.
EMEA
Metro rejects takeover offer.
German retailer Metro AG has rejected a $6.6bn takeover offer from an investment vehicle controlled by Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky, arguing it "substantially undervalues" the Düsseldorf-based Company.
EP Global Commerce, which is controlled by Mr. Kretinsky and his Slovakian business partner Patrik Tkac, said on Friday night that it would offer $18.1 in cash for each Metro share it does not already own, and $15.7 for each preference share.
Metro was advised by Rothschild & Co. EPGC was advised by BNP Paribas, Credit Suisse, goetzpartners, Societe Generale, Kirkland & Ellis.
"The biggest hurdle should be taken next Wednesday when the offer period for shares ends." Kimo Fournais of Saxo Bank.
Lazard, Rothschild & Co, Clifford Chance, NautaDutih are advising BinckBank. Ernst & Yound, JP Morgan, Allen & Overy are advising Saxo Bank.
Permira acquired a majority stake in Quotient Sciences, a global pharmaceutical development, clinical and commercial manufacturing organization. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Marcel Lacaze, Principal in the Global Healthcare Group of Permira, based in London, said, "Quotient Sciences and its disruptive approach to pharmaceutical drug development have created a truly unique business model. With GHO's support, the business has developed strongly in recent years, and we look forward to partnering with Mark and his team in continuing to grow this exciting Company."
Ropes & Gray advised Quotient.
Eurazeo Patrimoine, Eurazeo's investment division specializing in real estate and companies operating their own real assets, acquired a 44% stake in Emerige, a major player in real estate development in Paris, from Naxicap for €90m ($100m).
Renaud Haberkorn, Managing Partner, Head of Eurazeo Patrimoine, said: "We're pleased to be able to support Emerige in this very strong growth phase by bringing Eurazeo Patrimoine's expertise to this emblematic developer. With this acquisition of a stake in Emerige, we position ourselves as far upstream as possible in the value creation process."
Rothschild & Co is advising the sellers.
Funds advised by private equity firm Gilde Buy Out Partners invested in Eichholtz, an iconic designer and business to business wholesaler of luxury furniture, lighting, and home accessories. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Theo Eichholtz, CEO and founder of Eichholtz says: "I am extremely proud of and grateful for the hard work of all the employees who have brought Eichholtz to where we are today. We look forward to jointly enter a new chapter in the Eichholtz success story. Gilde is a strong partner that can help us accelerate our growth strategy, and fuel our international expansion, particularly in the US and Asia."
Rothschild & Co advised the sellers.
"In sync with Keensight Capital and Eurazeo's investment philosophy, we think one step ahead. Our ambition is to establish ourselves as the next European digital champion, through both organic growth and bolt-on acquisitions. We are confident that the guidance of two of the best European investment teams coupled with the roll-out of the second part of our Open Arrow strategy would enable us to make open source the main vector for digitalization in Europe." Marc Palazon, Smile Chairman of Executive Board.
"We are delighted to be backing such a strong management team in this specialist market. Premier Park has established itself as a first-class operator and enjoys a very loyal client base due to the breadth and quality of bespoke services delivered. We look forward to working with the team to develop and grow the business organically and through carefully selected acquisitions." Jeremy Morgan, Sovereign Capital Partners Partner.
“What’s important to customers is good products, good service and good value so that’s where we’ve spent the majority of our time and energy,” said Mark Mullen, Atom’s CEO, in a statement. “We’re growing our team here in the North East and will add 50 new roles this year to help us expand the range of products and services we offer, starting with Instant Access savings in the autumn. More than ever we are convinced of the importance of Atom’s role to drive positive change in UK banking.”
Bestinver, an investment company, has agreed to acquire Fidentiis, a company specializing in capital markets. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The agreement contemplates that Bestinver will absorb all the lines of business of Fidentiis (securities company, asset management, capital markets, and mergers and acquisitions) and will incorporate a team with more than 80 professionals.
Rallye to sell GO Sport Poland to Sportmaster.
Rallye-owned GO Sport, a sporting multi-specialist, entered talks to sell GO Sport Poland to Sportmaster, an international multi-category, a multi-brand retailer of sports and outdoor products. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Established since 1999 on the Polish market, GO Sport Poland now operates 33 stores. The aim of this disposal is to refocus Groupe GO Sport integrated activities on the French market. The proceeds would be reinvested in the GO Sport's transformation, which already started early this year.
Rothschild & Co is advising Rallye.
The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company has signed an agreement with China’s Wanhua Chemical Group to explore the collaborative development of new opportunities in the downstream sector in the UAE and China. Companies also signed a shipping joint venture agreement building on the 10-year LPG supply contract signed in 2018. The potential total value of the collaboration between ADNOC and Wanhua is estimated to be up to $12bn.
Under the terms of the JV Contractual Agreement, Adnoc Logistics and Services, Adnoc L&S, and Wanhua Chemical will establish an LPG shipping joint venture. The JV includes the operation of two VLGC vessels (Very Large Gas Carriers vessels).
The UAE JV would be focused on producing downstream derivatives, including polyurethanes value chain chemicals at Adnoc’s integrated refining petrochemicals complex in Ruwais, Abu Dhabi. The China JV would focus on exploring investment opportunities for the development and production of petrochemical and derivative products in Yantai, Shandong Province, China.
"Planned joint cooperation serves two key strategic objectives for ADNOC. First it demonstrates our ongoing commitment to China, and second, it represents another milestone in our journey to grow and diversify ADNOC’s downstream portfolio and establish Ruwais as a global refining and petrochemicals hub. These are key elements of our downstream expansion strategy that seeks to maximize value from our existing resources and secure more effective market access for our expanding portfolio of products.” Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, Director-General, and CEO.
Indutrade to acquire Sensor Groep.
Indutrade, an engineering services provider, has agreed to acquire Sensor Groep, a technical trading company providing and supplying sensors for industrial automation applications. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The acquisition is expected to have a marginally positive impact on Indutrade's earnings per share."
Givaudan to acquire Drom.
Givaudan, the global leader in flavors and fragrances, has agreed to acquire Drom, a fragrance producer. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Maurizio Volpi, President of Givaudan's Fragrance Division, said: "Drom is a much respected international fragrance house that has developed a strong customer base, in particular with local and regional customers, thanks to their creativity and excellent service levels. The complementary nature of both businesses will further enhance our capabilities in serving customers across all segments and geographies."
Baloise to acquire devis.ch.
Baloise, an insurance company, has agreed to acquire devis ch, a business to business services provider. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Within the scope of the strategic phase Simply Safe, Baloise is concentrating its investment and development focal points on strengthening and developing its service ecosystems. "The 'Home' ecosystem is a focus area for Baloise. We want to offer our customers simple services. With the majority stake in devis ch, we have taken another step toward establishing Baloise as a service provider in the 'House & Home' network." Wolfgang Prasser, Baloise member of the Executive Committee.
Iberdrola is in advanced talks to sell offshore wind farms worth c.€1bn.
Iberdrola, a Spanish public multinational electric utility, is in advanced talks to sell offshore wind farms. The operation, pending to define the assets that will be released, will range between €700m ($796m) and €1bn ($1.1bn).
It is also possible that Iberdrola could sell a stake below 50% in Wikinger, located in the Baltic Sea and in which it invested €1.4bn ($1.6bn) to put it into operation.
Clare Community Radio abandons Tipp FM deal talks.
Clare Community Radio Holdings have announced that the proposed acquisition of Clare FM and its 70% stake in Tipp FM by Radio Kerry Holdings will not be going ahead after lengthy negotiations between both parties ended without agreement.
"The deadline has passed without completion despite the best efforts of all involved, our priority at this stage is to ensure that we continue to deliver a first-class service for our listeners and advertisers in our franchise areas. We want to thank our team who worked hard on this project and look forward to a continued working relationship with Radio Kerry in the media industry." Maurice Harvey, Clare FM Chairman.
Selecta HTC looking for a business partner.
Selecta HTC, a zoological store, is looking for a business partner and is considering selling the brand. The new owner will receive, among other things, knowhow, list of recipients, and three-month support.
"We can say that for years we have been the precursors of various products on our market. We have gained recognition both among manufacturers of our industry and among our refiners, for example in the groomers' environment, as evidenced by awards and distinctions" Maria Dragstra, Selecta HTC owner.
Retailer Casino to sell three hypermarkets for €42m.
Casino, a French supermarket retailer, has signed pledges to sell three of its Geant Casino hypermarkets for €42m ($46.8m).
The company sells them to reduce debt. Casino has been struggling to improve profits in a tough business climate and faced concerns over its ability to generate enough cash to also pay off the debts of parent holding company Rallye.
Oekostrom has agreed to acquire a wind farm from OSTWIND.
Oekostrom, an electric utility company, has agreed to acquire a two Vestas V136 wind farms in Wansleben from OSTWIND, a windfarm owner.
"We are pleased about the acquisition of another wind project in Germany. Moreover, we are proud to further expand our partnership with OSTWIND and our advisor, Capcora." Lukas Stühlinger, oekostrom Member of the Executive Board.
Wrightbus is looking for investors.
Wrightbus, a bus manufacturer, has confirmed it is seeking an investor as it faces cash flow problems. The company is a major employer, with about 1,400 staff in Northern Ireland. In a statement, the company said it was working with Deloitte to find potential investors.
APAC
KKR to acquire Arnott's from Campbell Soup Company for $2.2bn. (FS)
Private equity firm KKR agreed to acquire Arnott's, the Australian snacks unit of Campbell Soup Company. Financial terms were not disclosed however the price is rumored to be $2.2bn.
“I can confirm that KKR’s offer for Arnott’s was accepted by Campbell’s late last night,” an Australia-based spokeswoman for the New York-headquartered buyout firm said.
Goldman Sachs and Centerview are financials advisors to Campell.
"The proposal delivers a significant premium for shareholders and recognizes the position Pacific Energy has built as the leading build-own-operate power supplier to the mining industry and remote townships in Western Australia, as well as the emerging opportunities from our growing east coast presence through Pacific Energy Victorian Hydro and NovaPower." Cliff Lawrenson, Pacific Energy chairman.
"Under Perusa we managed to further strengthen our position to become one of the largest suppliers in the promotional gift industry in Europe. We have worked with Perusa in very good harmony which is a good example for how a private equity and a former privately owned company can operate and manage to grow a company together." Albert van der Veen, Xindao Group CEO.
Zeta, a fintech company firm that runs a full-stack neo-banking platform and offers enterprise payments solutions, has secured a series C investment from Sodexo, at a valuation of $300m.
With the new capital, Zeta will look at expanding its business in the United States, United Kingdom, Europe, and Southeast Asia.
Today’s banking and fintech ecosystem requires cloud-native, privacy-aware, inherently secure, API first banking, and payment solutions. With this new investment, we want to further our vision to accelerate to a world where payments are invisible and seamless. We will be expanding our operations to over 15 countries in the next two years.” Bhavin Turakhia, co-founder and CEO of Zeta.
Jasmine International Public Company denied divestment rumours.
Jasmine International Public Company, a telecommunication services provider, has made an announcement:
"Regarding the news that appears in newspapers and online media that Jasmine International Public Company has the negotiation regarding the divestment of JAS shares, the Company would like to clarify that the Company is not true. "
Snapdeal in talks for fresh capital. (FS)
Snapdeal, an online marketplace, is in initial talks to raise a fresh round of funding. The talks are at a fairly early stage and investor names have not been finalized yet.
If the talks materialize, it will be Snapdeal's first external funding since May 2017, when it had raised an emergency round from existing investor Nexus Venture Partners, besides founders Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal.
NWS considers sell of Hong Kong's CityBus.
NWS Holdings, the infrastructure arm of New World Development, is considering a sale of its public transport business in Hong Kong for about $300m
The divestment may include Citybus and New World First Bus Services, which are among major franchised bus service operators in Hong Kong. The company is in talks with potential suitors, including Chinese conglomerate China Merchants Group.
Ekuinas explores options for Orkim. (FS)
Bloomberg reported that Malaysia's PE Fund Ekuinas is exploring options for its stake in Orkim, Malaysian oil tanker including a potential sale.
The private equity firm owning 95% of Orkim is working with advisers to divest the company in a deal that could value the business at as much as $243m.
An IPO in Kuala Lumpur is also an option for Orkim.
XVC Venture Capital raises $330m for its second fund. (FS)
XVC Venture Capital, Chinese venture capital firm, has raised $330m for its second fund XVC Fund II.
The new fund has capital commitments mainly from university endowments and family offices in the United States, Europe, and Asia. This second US dollar-denominated fund was largely oversubscribed.
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